I’m in a tough spot - I’m completely overloaded with sysadmin type work (server upgrades, firewall and vendor coordination, security, password maintenance) that I don’t have time to complete any programming work assigned to me. My bosses are aware and have done their best to help, but I just can’t keep up (have two young kids too and just can’t work nights anymore without trouble at home). My bosses have been great, so I feel terrible about this, but I think I’m going to have to look for another employer, I can’t do this anymore. Am I a horrible person to leave them with so much work even though they tried to help me?

Just click in a regular hour.

Doesn't matter what's not working...

Look for another job, it's a contract between an employer and an employee and if the employer cannot guarantee you a stable working environment, then fuck it.

No guilt involved, they didn't keep the end of the bargain.

at the end of the day it's all about you, however selfish it may sound. work ethic & sense for responsibility are rare and should be appreciated more, but I've seen many cases where guys because of 'loyalty to the employer' ended up burned out often w/ long-term health issues as a consequence/ruined relationships/stuck for years with technologies they hate. ~30 yo colleagues w/ more (work-caused) diagnoses - physical and/or mental - than some men in their 50s. I meet them every day, some deeply disgusted by the daily work, some constantly under pressure. their code is often half-baked because of that.

If you really feel like leaving and you'll find a better job, just go.

Can anything you are doing be automated or done by someone with less skills? Is management amenable to getting more resources?

Step 1) get them to hire someone to take some of the load

Step 2) resign if step 1 isn't completed.

All great advice, thank you very much for helping to out things into perspective

@Demolishun Great point, and yes, I’ve been putting in some extra time to automate as much as I can. It’s a big enterprise so any change takes countless hours of meetings, approvals, and coordination with other teams so it’s very slow going.

@C0D4 agreed, I’ve pitched to the manager that we hire a pure sysadmin type, but they keep hiring developers who don’t want to do the work and quit if we try to train them to do it.

If they can't find / afford someone to help you, then their business isn't viable, and that's not your problem. After all, the primary reason why you're working for someone else is to have other people take care of things you'd otherwise have to handle yourself.